Emergence and Expansion of Islam: with Reference to Christian Muslim Relations in Early Centuries

VFAST Transactions on Islamic Research http://vfast.org/journals/index.php/VTSE@ 2014 ISSN(e): 2309-6519; ISSN(p): 2411-6327 Volume 2, Number 1, January-December, 2014 pp. 63–-69 EMERGENCE AND EXPANSION OF ISLAM: WITH REFERENCE TO CHRISTIAN MUSLIM RELATIONS IN EARLY CENTURIES ADAM MALIK KHAN1 Associate Professor, Department of Islamic Studies, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh (UP) 202002 INDIA wrote letters to various heads ﷺ Abstract:With the establishment of Islamic state Prophet Muhammad of the states and chiefs of the tribes and invited them to embrace Islam. The expansion of Islam himself that ﷺ especially in Christian world was started during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad continued in later centuries. Under the pious caliphate the Christian land of Syria, Palestine, Egypt, North Africa, Azerbaijan, Armenia, parts of Asia Minor and some European islands came under Muslim control. In this period the Muslim navy was built, ending the Roman supremacy on sea. Expansion of Islamic world both in the East and the West was accomplished under Umayyad and Muslim armies attempted thrice to conquer Constantinople, the Byzantine capital. The consolidation of Muslim power was completed by Abd al- Malik by defeating and crushing the joint Roman and Berber army, further annexing North Africa. Along with Sindh and Central Asia, the Christian Spain was conquered and ruled for about eight centuries by various dynasties. The hostility between Abbasid and Byzantine was resumed by caliph al- Mahdi and continued till Mu’tasim. Many Byzantine areas of Asia Minor were invaded, and were also forced to pay tribute. Keeping in view the enmity with Umayyad of Spain the Abbasid established friendly relations with the Franks. Under Aghlabid Muslim rule was further expanded to Sicily, parts of Italy and many European Islands. In response of the Muslim supremacy over the Christians and due to the Muslim threat to the Byzantine Empire along with the other reasons the Christians of Europe united on the call of Pope Urban II and started crusade war in 1095 against the Muslims of the East. They conquered the various areas of the Arab East and established their Christian states there. In the Eight crusade wars fought on the Arab Land between the Muslims and Christians the later wars were either fruitless for the Christians or were in favour of the Muslims. The Zangid, the Ayyubid and the Mamluks proved to be the champions who not only defeated the crusaders but also re-conquered their lost areas. Finally these crusaders were driven out of the Arab land by the Mamluks in 1291 marking an end of Crusade wars. Keywords: Roman, Sassanid, Umayyad, Abbasid, Asia Minor, Crusade, Berber, Byzantine, Kahina, Visigothic, Saljuq, Clermont, Iberian, Murabit, Muwahhid, Safavid, Zangid, Ayyubid, Mamluk. Introduction: The year 610 is supposed to be most important in the history of mankind, when Allah, the Almighty and the most pious soul, the most honest personality and the most humane on ,ﷺ Sustainer of the Universe chose Muhammad earth as His last messenger and started revealing His last book that is known in the whole world with the name of Qur’ān. was declared as the last in the series of His messengers by Almighty Allah that started from Prophet ﷺ Prophet Muhammad was to invite the mankind towards His Unity and the ﷺ Adam . The first task assigned by Allah to Prophet Muhammad started inviting the people towards Islam and ﷺ himself. Accordingly Prophet Muhammad ﷺ Prophethood of Muhammad was to counter Quraysh ﷺ propagating its teachings among the whole mankind. First challenge before Prophet Muhammad who, being bitter enemies of Islam, attacked Madina many times to put this new religion to an end. The Quraysh of Makkah not only failed in their motive but lost their own dominant city to the hands of the Muslims. After the conquest of Makkah and his companions in 630 most of the Makkans including the Qurayshites embraced Islam and ﷺ by Prophet Muhammad became a part of Muslim Ummah. In this way the Prophet of Islam became the head of the newly established state that comprised of the cities of Makkah, Madinah and some parts of Arabian Peninsula with Madina as Islamic seat of government. At the time of the emergence of Islam a major part of the world was under Christianity, more especially under sent his emissaries to ﷺ Roman Empire. As the head of the Islamic Sate and the messenger of Allah Prophet Muhammad various heads of the states and tribal chiefs including the Sasanid ruler of Iran and Roman Emperor to embrace Islam. 1 63 Although the Roman Emperor did not accept Islam but he, unlike the Sassanid ruler, treated the Muslim envoy generously.1 In this way the Muslims came into contact with these Christians together with those Christians who were living with them in the heartland of Arabia. Although the Christians were the masters of a vast area in Asia, Europe and Africa but they supposed the rising power of the Muslims a threat to their rule and Christianity as well. These areas included Syria, Palestine, Egypt, North Africa, Asia Minor, Spain, Sicily, Italy and some European islands like Cyprus, Rhodes and others that came under Muslim control in a short span of time. In retaliation to these Muslim expansionist policy the first Muslim- Christian encounter took place at Mauta in 629, in which the small Muslim army suffered loss and had to retreat before a ﷺ large Roman army led by Theodorus.2 The second encounter between the Muslims led by the Prophet Muhammad himself and the Romans, led by Heraclius was to take place at Tabuk, a place at Syrian border but the battle could not be fought because the Roman leader got frightened of the advance of the Muslim army of about 40,000 and retreated from there.3 However the hostility between the two religious communities prevailed for long for the one’s superiority over the other. In addition to the Christians there were two major enemies of Islam, the Quraysh and the Jews. But as has been mentioned above the Quraysh came under the banner of Islam after the conquest of Makkah who, earlier, openly opposed and attacked Madinah, the first capital Muslim State many times. The Jews who were living inside ﷺ Prophet Muhammad They, having hatred towards .ﷺ Madinah , were one among the signatories of the agreement with the Prophet Muhammad Islam and Muslims in their hearts, played treacherous role with the Muslims. Consequently they were not only expelled .at Khaybar ﷺ from Madina but were defeated and punished by Prophet Muhammad continued in ﷺ The Muslim-Christian conflict that had been started during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad later days. The Muslim army under the command of Khalid bin Walid, not only defeated the Sassanid army at various places of Iraq but took control of a part of Syria that was being governed by the Roman Empire. The expansion of Islamic boundaries continued under the pious caliphs, during the Umayyad rule and early Abbasids. Under Umar ibn al- Khattab , the second pious caliph, the Christians were banished from Najran for their hostility towards Islam. The battle of Yarmuk fought against the Romans in 636 proved to be final supremacy of the Muslims over the Romans in the region in which the Muslim army led by Khalid bin Walid routed the enemy and their commander, Theodorus fell on the battlefield.4 After that Damascus and some other cities like Emessa, Qinissarin, Aleppo and Antioch fell before Muslims, that became parts of Muslim World forever.5 During the caliphate of Umar ibn al- Khattab Muslim army was so powerful that after the conquests of Iraq and Syria Muslim conquered Palestine after some resistance and the control over Jerusalem was handed over by the Christians to Caliph Umar ibn al- Khattab himself in 638 without any resistance after an agreement signed between the invaders and the leaders of the city.6 The conquest of Egypt began during the caliphate of Umar ibn al- Khattab in 640 when the towns of Farma, Bilbays, the fortress of Babiliyun, Memphis, Ayn Shams and Alexandria conquered.7 With these conquests Egypt became a part of Muslim World under Umar ibn al- Khattab . Although the later half of the caliphate of Uthman bin Affan passed in disturbances but the first six years of his caliphate were marvellous as in this period Muslim armies kept on marching both in the East and the West. On the one side the Christian areas of Azerbaijan, Armenia and parts of Asia Minor were annexed to the Muslim Empire and on the other a major part of North Africa was conquered. It was the period when Muslim Navy was built by Amir Mu’awiyah, the then governor of Syria with 500 ships and by this by this the naval supremacy of the Muslims over Romans was established. With the help of this navy Muslims not only captured Cyprus but re-conquered the port city of Alexandria also.8 The period of caliph Uthman bin Affan is also more important than the others as the Muslim power got more strengthened on both the land and sea with the creation of Muslim Navy. Caliph Uthman bin Affan is also credited for the conquest of North African region that was also being ruled by the Romans. After few successful campaigns into the outer areas of North Africa by Uqba ibn Nafi’, Abd Allah bin Sa’ad, the governor of Egypt himself took the command in his hands and invaded its major part including Tripoli in 646. After the conquest Abd Allah bin Sa’ad marched to North-Western areas of North Africa.

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